Monthly Archives: December 2011

Freak weather and upheavals in Korea’s political landscape punctuated a year of uncertainties that ended with the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il just before Christmas. But Koreans also took pride in their burgeoning exports, not only of electronics and cars that are increasingly prized around the world but also of the pop music generated by leading talent factories, which cheered up listeners worldwide in gloomy times.

◆ Kim Jong-il Dies

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il died on a cold December day, according to the state media suffering a heart attack on his armored train while on his way to one of his on-the-spot guidance tours. Where that account is true or not, the fact remains that his undeniably dead body lies in state in Pyongyang, and his son Kim Jong-un (29) has been officially declared the new leader. North Korea’s regional neighbors are anxiously watching to see if he can establish his hold on power and wondering what it will mean for peace on the region and the fate of 24 million North Koreans.

◆ Software Tycoon Blows Korean Politics Wide Open

When software tycoon Ahn Cheol-soo said he was considering running for Seoul mayor in the Oct. 26 by-elections, he triggered a seismic shift in the political landscape as a solid majority expressed their support before he had even declared his candidacy. That revealed a widespread disaffection with the political establishment and a yearning for a fresh approach. Ahn ceded his mayoral bid to lawyer-turned-civic-activist Park Won-soon, whose victory many attribute to Ahn’s support. Ahn is now being touted as a possible presidential contender.

Both ruling and opposition lawmakers admitted they were stymied by voter distrust. The results of the general and presidential elections next year are expected to lead to the biggest changes in Korean politics since the introduction of direct elections for president back in 1987.

◆ Korea Ratifies FTAs with EU and U.S.

The ruling Grand National Party railroaded through the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement at the National Assembly on Nov. 22 despite strong protests from opposition parties, four years and five months after it was signed by both sides. The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed the FTA in late October. As a result, Korea became the first Asian country to forge FTA deals with both the EU and U.S., while paving the way for tariff-free trade with countries that account for 60 percent of the world’s GDP. The FTA with Washington will go into effect early next year, but opposition parties are still calling for it to be renegotiated.

◆ Korea Becomes World’s No. 7 Exporter

Korea’s annual trade volume surpassed US$1 trillion on Dec. 5. Exports totaled $515.6 billion, while imports amounted to $486 billion. Korea became the ninth country in the world to achieve that feat. Korea’s exports totaled just $19 million back in 1948, half the level of Kenya and Cameroon and ranked 100th in the world. But in six decades on, Korea became the world’s seventh-largest exporter.

◆ Pyeongchang Finally Wins Bid to Host Winter Olympics

Millions of Koreans sat in front of their TV sets at midnight on July 7 when International Olympic Committee Chairman Jacques Rogge declared Pyeongchang the winner to host the 2018 Winter Olympics. Pyeongchang had tasted defeat twice before in its bids for the 2010 and 2014 games, when it lost to Vancouver and Sochi. But this time, Pyeongchang comfortably beat Munich and Annecy, garnering 63 out of 95 votes.

Korea becomes the fifth country in the world to host both the summer and winter Olympics, the football World Cup, the World Championships in Athletics and the Formula 1 race. The others are France, Italy, Germany and Japan.

◆ World Falls in Love with K-Pop

K-pop was the top Korean entertainment product to sweep the world this year. Manufactured bands are continuing the Korean Wave triggered by the popularity of soap operas such as “Winter Sonata” and “Jewel in the Palace,” and drew legions of fans not only in Japan, China and other parts of Asia, but also in Europe, the Middle East, the U.S. and Latin America.

Girls’ Generation, Kara, 2PM, SHINee, 2NE1, Big Bang, Super Junior, TVXQ and JYJ held concert tours around the world and swept through their album chart rankings. Fans in the U.S., Europe and Latin America even took to the streets demanding K-pop concerts in their countries.

◆ Record Rainfall in Seoul

Korea was drenched with record precipitation in July with many regions experiencing between 100 to 200 mm of rainfall that lasted for days, triggering mudslides and other damage. It was the largest amount of rain in Korea in a century. Heavy rains on July 27 in particular submerged many parts of Seoul and triggered a mudslide on a mountain in an affluent southern suburb of the capital. The downpours left 71 people dead across the country.

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Just translated key parts from the post of a staff who experienced the uncomfortable relationship between JYJ and SM Entertainment.

—————————–

– It’s not present, but I once happened to work with JYJ’s Yuchun Park and SM artists (SHINee, Super Junior, Girls’ Generation and etc). I wasn’t the PD but I was in charge of something similar.

– Normally when you make TV programs, it can be worked out well when the agreement between the production (who pays the money), staff (PD and other people who actually make programs) and other 3rd party (broadcasting company and the others who air the program) is well-processed. People may think that the one who pays the money has the strongest power among those three.

– However, the situations become very different when JYJ and SM artists are on the same program’s casting board in broadcasting industries regardless of what program it is. When there are JYJ and SM together, all the three parties involved in programs tend to be in SM’s favour. Actually they have been in favour of only SM’s sides for several years.

According to my own experience,

There was a production company who wanted to cast JYJ on its program. And the production and staff also wanted SM’s artists who were making Korean Wave together. So far so good, a scriptwriter of the program made his/her casting offer and it went all well. However, it was declined by the broadcasting company. The reason was the one everyone knows.

The funny thing was that all of the 3 major broadcasting companies did the same thing. There was difference of intensity to say it, but the decisions were the same. Only SBS said in less-intense way.

But I didn’t like this unreasonable and incomprehensible situation so pushed ahead with a plan[the original casting] in a quite strong way. Eventually, the people in senior positions said that it wouldn’t be possible that JYJ appears in the program, and especially not possible when there is SM on the same casting board. And they told that only one member of JYJ could be accepted in the consideration of the staff’s position. So Yuchun Park was appeared as an actor, not as a singer.

– In fact, the SM singer who was casted at the same time [with JYJ on the same program] knew about the casting later, and gave me an ultimatum by saying that I would have to choose the one between the two, and he/she[SM singer] would refuse to appear on the program if JYJ appeared as any smallest role. I said that I would never ask them for another work cause it was so chip and nasty, then Yuchun Park was finally able to appear.

– And the SM singer cancelled the appearance, and I was harshly criticized by the broadcasting company. The reason was that why I had to choose Yuchun Park, while there are possibilities that they[SM singers] could boycott their future appearances on other music or entertainment programs and there could be other direct/indirect disadvantages in any ways.

– SM Entertainment has pocketed as much as it could in 2011. They had a lot of government money and made worldwide issues. Soo Man Lee even was awarded a medal. It seems to be Samsung in entertainment industry. The reason that SM keeps JYJ from being in entertainment industry is crystal clear. Because JYJ is the one who could damage its position.

– According to the words by JYJ’s sides a few months ago, “the news about JYJ’s concerts in America never makes the front parts”, “They[SM] know more than us that JYJ is second to none in ticket-power and any other influence when there is direct competition between any singers of SM and JYJ.

Well people say that broadcasting field is quite dirty. What I experienced was even a lot dirtier.

* I think everyone can have some information about SM’s interference in JYJ, but just thought this kind of eyewitness evidence in open public could be more significant.

* Do not move or use the contexts in your own writing without any notices or permissions. I just wanted to share some situations in Korea with JYJ fans, and do not want to feel sore by seeing someone use my works in their own manners without myself not knowing it.

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Idol group JYJ pushed Lee Seung Gi, and SNSD and was awarded as the best idol star.

‘2011 Best Icon Award’, which started its survey on August 28th on the KBS Homepage, awarded JYJ as the best idol star.

Winning 58,357 votes, JYJ received the honor of first place by surpassing 2nd in place Lee Seung Gi, with 53,560 votes. In the year 2011, the three members released the first Korean special album ‘In Heaven’ and showed off their vocals.

In the best idol star category were JYJ, Lee Seung Gi, Park Shi Hoo, Kim Hyun Joong, and SNSD in their respective order.

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Korean group JYJ member Kim Jaejoong’s good looks have been recognised in Peru.

In the “EL Hombre Mas Sexy del Mundo De la Revista Privilege 2011″ poll done in Peru on 20 December, Kim Jaejoong took the position of the no.1 “pretty boy” in the world with 44.3% of the votes. Previously, he had been voted no.2 most famous twitter celebrity in Japan, and was also compared to Robert Pattinson, and now he is once again being recognised in Peru.

Another point to note was that members of the previously 5-man TVXQ were the top 5 of this poll, with JYJ’s Park Yoochun at no. 3 (10.6%), Kim Junsu at no. 5 (0.7%), TVXQ’s Choikang Changmin at no. 2 (36.4%) and U-Know Yunho at no. 4 (0.8%).

Netizens who saw this left messages such as “Kim Jaejoong is truly a world-class beauty,” “Kim Jaejoong’s beauty is recognised even in Peru” “Kim Jaejoong dominates Peru” “The ultimate sexy guy,” and other responses.

Today, there was a flashmob in Myeongdong and Busan at 12:26pm KST to celebrate the anniversary, and I was lucky enough to go to the one in Myeongdong 🙂

I had told them in advance that I’d be taking my DSLR to film the whole thing, so I got to chat with some of the people in charge before it all began and they made sure to put me right at the front so that no one was blocking the camera.

I was actually supposed to be in it, but I missed the very last and most important rehearsal, so I offered my assistance as a camera-person for the day and thankfully, they gladly accepted the offer. 🙂

It was great, a lot of kCassies had showed up to watch and lots of passer-bys were asking who the people dancing were, and I could hear fans proudly saying, “They’re TVXQ fans, Cassiopeia!”

I didn’t get the message sequence that came before the flashmob, but I remember the words said this,

There’s supposed to be five rows (but I couldn’t fit them all into the shot) and a heck of a lot of people in each. There were a LOT of dancers, and they were all pretty darn awesome!

The middle part is supposed to be the ‘Horizon dance’ (that TVXQ is oh-so-famous for), a move from Summer Dream and of course, the infamous duckbutt move from good ole’ Junsu X)

That was then followed by moves from Mirotic (in which everyone in the crowd started screaming like OMFG EEEEE) and the rest was from ‘Balloons’ again. And then came the ‘Everyone, pretend like nothing happened and run awayyyyyy’ moment 😛

Everyone had a ton of fun, we all patted each other on the back and then most people left. There was an ‘all-fan free hug session’ going on so of course, I went and got some Cassiopeia lovin’ 😉 I saw a lot of fans donating to the Salvation Army (who were right next to us) and it was really heartwarming to see (and I didn’t forget to donate either XD)

All in all, it was a great event and I’m so lucky to have been a part of it. And as we left, we all said, “See you next year!” Aw yeah~!!

P.S. I apologize in advance for any shaking in the video. It’s not easy to hold up a DSLR in the frigid cold that is Korean winter weather ;A;

Also, I was super close to them, at one point, they were right in front of me and I was like ‘omg too close, too close!!!’

P.P.S I’ll try and fix the quality of the vid later, I have to go to a family dinner tonight 😛 (Jk you can watch it in HD now :D)

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The drama DVD will be released in Japan in February 2012. Park Yoochun, who has been receiving a great amount of praise as an actor, shared his memories about his shooting process with us at The Banyan Tree Club & Spa Seoul, the hotel where the outdoor shoots for “Miss Ripley” was done.

Acting while thinking about “The situation of a first love”

“The Song Yoohyun which I portray is innocent and doesn’t know anything about love, a person who mulls over his problems and doesn’t talk about it.” This is what Yoochun says about his role in “Miss Ripley.” As he explained, Yoohyun was born to a Japanese mother and Korean father, and his mother passed away when he was 9 years old. Following that, he studied at the University of Tokyo, and has the Japanese name Yutaka, as well as Korean name Yoohyun. His father remarried, and hoped that his son would take over the business. If this was a typical drama, the main character would be rebel against his father and refuse to take over the business. However, Song Yoohyun is a straightforward man who grew up in a proper manner, and it was probably because of this that he bumps into the beautiful Jang Miri at a student hostel in Seoul, and falls in love with her at first sight. His expression at that moment in time is probably a true expression of Yoohyun’s innocence, leaving a deep impression.

“The director said that to Song Yoohyun, Jang Miri is his first love, so he wanted me to express the emotion of being in love for the first time. However, when I was acting I was not thinking about my first love, instead immersing myself in the character of Yoohyun then expressing the emotion.” Compared to the innocent Song Yoohyun, female lead Jang Miri, despite living in a student hostel herself, felt that “men who are living in a student hostel must be poor,” so prior to knowing that he is a chaebol, always treated Yoohyun in a cold manner. To escape her bitter past, she lies that she is a graduate of the University of Tokyo, and starts working in a hotel. She dates both Kim Seung Woo’s character Jang Myung Hoon, and Song Yoohyun at the same time. Although she is the female lead, her role has a strong image of an “evil woman.”

“If it were me, I definitely wouldn’t be cheated by a person like Miri. As long as there is something slightly strange about his/her actions or words, I will be able to tell that it is a lie. Ah no, there are times which I can’t tell as well (laughs). If you were to ask if I was someone who would be easily cheated or not, do I look like the type who will be easily fooled? I feel that I haven’t really been cheated before, and can detect a lie at a glance. When chatting with staff, I can tell immediately if they are lying. If it’s being fooled by a girlfriend? Hmm… then maybe I won’t be able to tell (laughs). I think my mom would say “You’re still not there yet.”

Saying with an innocent face that he cannot be fooled, then saying that he might be fooled, Park Yoochun’s air of purity seems to fit well with the character of Song Yoohyun.

In the drama, Song Yoohyun falls in love with Jang Miri and expresses this directly. But considering it carefully, Song Yoohyun does not understand how Miri grew up, and her character. Furthermore, Miri showed no interest to him at first, treating him in a cold manner, pushing him away, and despite being treated this way, he fearlessly expresses his feelings for her. Even though Miri’s friend, Moon Hui Joo (played by Kang Hye Jung) expresses her interest in Yoohyun, he doesn’t waver at all.

“I think that anyone could fall in love at first sight. But whether that will lead to love, I don’t know.Personally, I hope that love can last for a long time, and develop slowly. Of course, if I meet someone I like, I will work hard to show her my charm. Song Yoohyun is a optimistic person, and we are similar in that aspect. But in terms of having a special method of “if you do this, you can definitely get the girl,” I don’t have that (laughs).

“To touch a person’s heart is really difficult. If you ask me what you should do to move someone, I don’t have an answer to that too.”

In that case, have you considered how you would need to touch someone as an actor?

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“Red…makes me think of the members who will continue having a very close relationship even in the future!”

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-Micky Yoochun-

"We have always been together as 5.
As the others are not with us right now, it’s embarrassing to say this, but I felt the love from them.
Therefore, I do not wish to forget the most important thing to me, and this song was written based on this feeling."
- Micky Yoochun during Colors promotions (FRaU November Issue) 2009

-About Dong Bang Shin Ki?-

- A thing which I treasure the most
-Micky Yoohun, Nikkan Daily SPorts 2009